Introduction
Scott D. Shimick joined Whiteman Osterman & Hanna LLP in January 2015 and is a Partner in the Firm’s Federal and State Taxation Practice Group. Since 2005, Mr. Shimick has represented businesses and individuals in tax controversies before the Internal Revenue Service and the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance, including audits, administrative proceedings, appeals and litigation. He also advises private equity firms and closely held businesses, as well as their owners, on tax planning in connection with business transactions, ownership changes, succession planning and other significant business events.
Mr. Shimick’s tax controversy practice includes representation in federal and New York State examinations, tax appeals, collection matters and other disputes involving federal and state tax liabilities. He has represented taxpayers before the IRS, the New York’s Division of Tax Appeals and Tax Appeals Tribunal, and in the United States Tax Court. His experience includes matters involving sales and use tax, income tax, employment tax, residency and other federal and New York State tax issues.
Mr. Shimick also advises architecture, engineering and other design professionals on the tax issues that arise throughout the life of a professional practice. His work includes tax planning for federal and state taxes, deferred compensation, succession planning, and the acquisitions and dispositions. He has developed a particular interest in helping design professional firms and their owners understand how legal structure, tax elections and business objectives interact.
Mr. Shimick’s tax planning experience includes developing strategies for mergers, acquisitions and business dispositions, as well as advising on nonqualified deferred compensation planning.
Experience
- Represented businesses in New York sales tax hearings that resulted in a reduction of the tax liability of more than 90%.
- Represented taxpayers in New York residency matters involving domicile, statutory residency, audits, administrative proceedings and appeals.
- Represented taxpayers before the IRS in matters involving audits, tax assessments, refund claims and Employee Retention Tax Credit disputes.
- Developed complex tax planning strategies for private equity acquisitions.
- Designed and implemented an inversion reorganization to reduce state income taxes for a client with significant capital assets.
Education
Mr. Shimick received a Master of Laws in Taxation from the University of Florida. He received his Juris Doctor from Loyola University New Orleans. While at Loyola, Mr. Shimick served on the Loyola Law Review and was a member of the Loyola Moot Court. Mr. Shimick received a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Florida, where he majored in Classical Studies and was a member of the Delta Theta Phi Honorary Society.
Professional Affiliations
Mr. Shimick is admitted to practice in New York and before the United States Tax Court and the United States District Courts for the Northern and Western Districts of New York. He served as an adjunct professor in SUNY Geneseo’s Master of Tax program.
Publications
- Heisenberg’s Uncertainty: An Analysis of Criminal Tax Pretextual Prosecutions in the Context of Breaking Bad’s Notorious Anti-Hero, 50 TULSA L. REV. 43 (Fall 2014).
- Mertens: Law of Federal Income Taxation, Chapter 11 Cancellation of Indebtedness Income.
- Mertens: Law of Federal Income Taxation, Chapter 43A Section 351 Exchanges.
- Mertens: Law of Federal Income Taxation, Chapter 40A Real Estate Mortgage Investment Conduits (REMICs).
- Civil Litigation: COA Overrules Tax Department’s Position on Residency, The Daily Record (March 17, 2014).
- TIGTA Has Addressed Several Important IRS Problems Beyond the Tea Party Scandal, Mertens Current Tax Highlights and Developments, Spotlight Article (September 2013).
Media Mentions
